BEIJING (Reuters) - An eastern Chinese province has
introduced a daily reporting system to monitor the spread of a
virus that has killed 19 children and spread panic among
residents, Xinhua news agency reported on Monday.

The enterovirus 71, or EV71, which can cause hand, foot and
mouth disease, began spreading in Anhui province's Fuyang city
from early March, Xinhua said, but was only publicly reported
on Sunday.

The virus had been found before in China, but "we believe
the situation is still of concern, especially because of the
current high reported case fatality rate compared to previous
years," the World Health Organisation's acting China
Representative, Cris Tunon, said in a statement.

WHO recommended that parents keep their children away from
public places during an outbreak and make sure they frequently
wash their hands.

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In a sign of new attention to the outbreak, Health Minister
Chen Zhu visited Fuyang at the weekend. The provincial health
department will also host workshops to train more medical
workers in prevention and cure of the virus, the report said.

By Monday, there were 915 cases, a jump of more than 100
from the figures released at the weekend, Xinhua reported.

Among them were 19 deaths, the majority of them children
under the age of two. A total of 269 children remained in
hospital, seven in critical condition, Xinhua said.

Enteroviruses spread mostly through contact with infected
blisters or faeces and can cause high fever, paralysis and
swelling of the brain or its lining.

There is no vaccine or antiviral agent available to treat
or prevent the virus. Instead, treatment focuses on managing
its complications, which can include meningitis and heart
failure, the WHO's Tunon said.

EV71 outbreaks have occurred in past years in Southeast
Asia and some East European countries.